Aimless Ascension

Shi Fan practised Qi control, walking on water. Well, it was more like running on the water than walking. Walking was still far away from his grasp. Perhaps after he advances to silver.

Anyway, it was a neat trick to run on water. All he had to do was thrust his Qi the moment his feet touched the surface. Sounds pretty easy, and it was actually easy. Anyone with a bit of control in the iron rank could do it.

However, what Shi Fan was practising was a little different. Shi Fan pushed Qi to the lowest minimum required for him to move around on the water. His focus was on creating the least amount of ripple on the surface of the river.

Honestly, he wasn't doing a great job in the last part.

On the mountain terrain, the river was streaming fast, yet with each step of his foot and Qi thrust, he created enough upheaval that would not lose out when compared with a sumo wrestler falling into the water.

Well, it had only been two days since he started this training on Twilight's advice. It wasn't his primary focus yet. Currently, he was trying to refine his intent, putting himself through hard challenges.

Running on the water was only to relax and cultivate his movement skill.

Still, it was taking quite an effort. In about an hour more, he would be completely drained. Considering that he would have to hunt a beast for the meal, he ended the practice within half an hour.

Shi Fan barely got out of the river and was wondering if Twilight was nearby when something caught his attention. A creature was rushing at tremendous speed in his direction from high up, waking everything in its way.

Shi Fan took position, surging his Qi through his channels. He was about to equip his sword when a familiar 'woof' resounded in his ears. Shi Fan paused, though wasn't really relieved.

Eventually, a furry beast came into his vision, lunging with all his might. Vale rushed at Shi Fan, reminding the youth again how their first encounter had been. Shi Fan gripped the hilt tightly, looking around to see if he could find Twilight anywhere.

He couldn't, but he did see a figure coming down from the sky. The dog didn't attack Shi Fan, much to his delight, though the way it was running in a circle orbiting him, warned him what was to come.

The owner of the dog dropped in front of him with that iconic smile on his lips. Shi Fan flinched, wondering about his next course of action.

"Peace," Gale said, drawing his arms wide in the air.

"Senior, what are you doing here?"

"Taking care of stuff," Gale said. Vale finally stopped running around Shi Fan and went back to his master, lunging in much delight. Gale ruffled the dog with affection. "Alright, alright, you won."

He turned left, right, anywhere his eyes could follow, as if looking for a hidden enemy. Shi Fan strengthened his will to not sweat profusely. He knew exactly what he was looking for.

"So where's your friend?" Gale asked, eventually.

"Friend?" Shi Fan repeated dumbly as his mind wondered how this fellow found him so easily. Not to mention understood his connection with Twilight.

Twilight had mentioned parts of her encounter with this weird senior, where she had to take some loss. He clearly remembered Twilight's advice: Stay as far away as possible from him.

Shi Fan was doing exactly that. He changed his lair, leaving almost no trails behind, yet they found him. Perhaps it was the dog.

"Your friend," Gale added, still trying to figure out where Twilight was hiding, "they is good."

"They?" Shi Fan was startled.

"I know it's one person," Gale told him. "Tall, clad in black Gothic clothes with an eerie absence of presence. I'm unaware of their inclination of sex or if they even have one."

Shi Fan gaped with his mouth wide open. He joined Gale in watching around. "Senior, I. . . ."

"Don't worry, as long as I can confirm it's a misunderstanding, I would be the happiest person here. Who do you think will want a creep watching over their back all the time? And the worst part is, I may not be able to find them all the time."

"Senior, it's truly a misunderstanding," Shi Fan said, swallowing. "My friend, she didn't have any bad intentions, only wanted to see if you harbour any bad intentions towards me."

"She?" Gale raised an eyebrow.

Shi Fan nodded. "She confirmed that you don't have any bad intentions towards me." She Fan paused, looking around, wondering if Twilight would ever show up.

"She isn't here, is she?"

"I don't know," Shi Fan said truthfully. "She shows up from time to time to remind me she is there or if I need anything."

"If I attacked you now, do you think she would show up?"

Shi Fan opened his mouth to answer, but pursed immediately, unsure what to say that would stop this brutish senior.

Gale chuckled. "Relax, I'm only joking. Anyway, I don't think I'll get a look at her anytime soon. So let's get to business. I want to buy some amount of Pure crystal from you if it's okay with you?"

Shi Fan blinked and considered the proposal. He still would've liked Twilight's presence next to him, which would give him much of the courage he would need. But it looked like he had to do it on his own.

"Senior, didn't you say you don't have any use for them?

"It's not for me."

Shi Fan nodded, understanding. "How much?"

"Not much, about a couple of kilograms."

Shi Fan hummed in contemplation. He would have no trouble with this exchange, though he would like to consult Twilight first. To clear things up, it would be ideal to agree to this deal.

"Unfortunately, senior, I don't have all the pure crystal on me. As you know, they radiate aura all the time."

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Happy New Year.